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Multiple-Meaning Words

A multiple-meaning word is spelled and said the same way but means different things: a bat flies at night, and you hit a ball with a bat. Context is the only clue, which is why these words are such good reading practice.

Here are 124 multiple-meaning words from past ClueBy puzzles, each with a real example sentence for every meaning. Use them as a reference, or make a printable worksheet below.

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Students read each sentence and write the missing word. Every word appears in several sentences, each time with a different meaning.

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Multiple-Meaning Words

Name: ____________________Date: __________

Write the missing word in each sentence. Each word is used more than once, with a different meaning each time.

  1. The bus was late because of the traffic ________________.
  2. What's the best way to remove ear ________________?
  3. ________________ is common in the lakes of Sweden.
  4. He was locked up in a ________________.
  5. Many English words ________________ from Latin.
  6. I am seized by an uncontrollable ________________ of sadness.
  7. The stadium has a track around the football ________________.
  8. Vegetables are growing on this ________________.
  9. Oh no! I wasn't paying attention and left my ________________ phone in the restaurant!
  10. Each ________________ is a complete and highly sophisticated living world in its own right.
  11. A lot of friends came to ________________ goodbye to me.
  12. Would you like some apricot ________________?
  13. Tom got himself in a ________________.
  14. The surfers were looking for the perfect ________________.
  15. The big green plant was starting to droop at the ________________.
  16. She's an expert in the ________________ of medicine.
  17. The moon will ________________ and wane.
  18. Hard work is the ________________ to success.
  19. Are you the only one who has a ________________ to this door?
  20. The museum has ________________ figures of famous people.
  21. Scientists study ________________ cells to repair damaged tissue.
  22. The owl hooted softly from its ________________.
  23. This piece is in a major ________________.
  24. The birds use the scarecrow as a ________________.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com

Answer key

  1. jam — in traffic
  2. wax — in the ear
  3. perch — the fish
  4. cell — in a prison
  5. stem — to come from
  6. wave — a sudden rise
  7. field — for sport
  8. field — farmland
  9. cell — a phone
  10. cell — in biology
  11. wave — with your hand
  12. jam — to spread on bread
  13. jam — a tight spot
  14. wave — of the sea
  15. stem — of a plant
  16. field — a subject
  17. wax — to grow
  18. key — the most important part
  19. key — for a lock
  20. wax — for sculpting
  21. stem — a stem cell
  22. perch — for a bird
  23. key — in music
  24. perch — for a bird

Multiple-meaning words list

Tick up to 10 words to build a worksheet with just those words.

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Frequently asked questions

What are multiple-meaning words?

Words with the same spelling and pronunciation but more than one meaning, like bark (of a dog or of a tree) or bank (for money or of a river). You can only tell which meaning is meant from the rest of the sentence.

Are multiple-meaning words the same as homonyms?

Mostly, yes. Teachers often use "multiple-meaning words" and "homonyms" for the same idea. Homophones are different: they sound alike but are spelled differently, like flour and flower.

Are the worksheets free?

Yes. Make and print as many as you like for home or classroom use. Each sheet has its own link, so you can print the same one again.

Where do the words come from?

From past ClueBy puzzles, a daily game where you sort twelve sentences by their missing word. A new puzzle every day adds four more words to this list.

Sentences from ClueBy, Tatoeba (CC BY 2.0 FR) and Common Voice (CC0). clueby.com